How to Earn Extra Income To Reach Your Financial Goals
You have goals – we all do. Maybe you want to start a new business, send your kids to college, or retire comfortably. All great goals that can be accomplished by diligently throwing money toward them.
The problem is that it can be difficult to make any headway when you have no money leftover. And how many of us really do?
For most people, their regular job doesn’t leave any room to make progress towards their goals – at least not as quickly as they’d like. So what can you do? You have two choices:
Forget your goals – or be content with your limited progress.
Make more money.
Since you’re here, we’ll assume that option number one is not what you want. Fortunately, there are many ways you can make option number two happen, and we’ve listed several below.
In this list, you’ll find things you can start today with no experience or qualifications, some that will take a few weeks and resources, and some that require a certificate. You can choose one or several options in order to meet your financial goals. Or you can use this list as a jump-off point to get your creativity flowing.
Now, I know you’re probably asking, “If I don’t have the money for my goals, how am I going to have money for resources and certifications?” We’ll cover that, too. For now, though, let’s jump into these income-producing ideas.
Etsy Shop Owner
Etsy is an incredible platform for handmade and DIY items. If you make anything – jewelry, furniture, decorations, or anything else – you can make some serious cash. I know several people who run a lucrative side hustle through Etsy, and many more have turned it into a full-time job.
The best thing to do is browse the platform for yourself, see what sells well, and get inspired. And while you can sell anything you choose, put some thought into printables, such as:
- Planners
- Worksheets
- Party games, like scavenger hunts
- Flash cards
- Wall art
Believe it or not, these are some of the top sellers. And the great thing about printables is that you make them once but sell them over and over again.
With furniture and other items, you have to make a new one for each order you get. This isn’t to say you shouldn’t sell your handmade items. However, if you could put up a few printables first, you could be making a passive, extra income while creating your other products.
Freelance Services
There are so many things you can offer both online and in-person for your local community. Fortunately, when you offer them as freelance services, you typically don’t need a degree – that’s more for when you are applying to work at a company.
Offering your own services typically requires no more than some referrals or maybe some sample work. You’ll also need to have a website or social media page – preferably both. You can also utilize different platforms, like Fiverr and Upwork to advertise your services.
So, what can you offer? The sky’s the limit, but here are a few ideas to consider:
House Cleaning
Let’s face it – almost no one has the time nor the energy to keep their house as clean as they’d like. And most are willing to pay a fair price to have it done for them.
Check out other house cleaners in your area to learn what they offer and at what price. If you can be competitive, you can make some extra income doing this.
Some people ask for referrals, so you might have to clean a house or two for family or friends. However, as someone who has worked this job before, I can tell you that it will be worth the trouble.
Now let’s be honest, cleaning up behind someone else isn’t a job for everyone – and that’s okay. If scrubbing toilets and kitchens isn’t something you want to do, there are other services you can offer homeowners that are listed below.
1. Organizing
Do you have a knack for organizing? This is an excellent service to offer homeowners. Some people struggle with getting organized either due to lack of time or lack of skill. However, everyone wants an organized home.
You can offer organizational services without any qualifications, but you might need referrals. Or you could just show some pictures of your own organized space.
If you want to expand your clientele at any point, you can get certified as a professional organizer. To do so, you’ll need a minimum of 1,500 hours of paid organizing experience. This can be a worthy path as professional organizers typically get paid anywhere between $30 and $130 per hour.
2. Clean Outs
This isn’t about tubs, toilets, and kitchens. Sometimes, people need help cleaning out garages, storage buildings, or homes they’ve inherited. And more often than not, it’s such a monumental task that they’re willing to pay a pretty good bit for help.
3. Yard Work
This side hustle has been around for a long time, and it can be as versatile as you’d like. You can offer simple grass cutting to trimming trees and planting a garden.
Some people have successfully taken this side job into a full-blown career by starting a landscaping company. And that typically happens by starting with a few clients, getting referrals, and taking on new clients. Eventually, you can hire help and expand even further.
4. House Sitting
When homeowners go out of town – especially for extended trips – they often hire a house sitter to handle everything while they’re gone. It may seem like it’s not an in-demand service, but that’s not true. There are actually people that do not have a home of their own. Instead, they travel all over and house sit – making money and keeping a roof over their head at the same time.
5. Handyman Services
Are you good with tools? Do you love to fix items and homes? People need help all the time – especially single, elderly, or really busy people.
Advertise your services as a handyman or woman around your community. This may be a sporadic gig, but every dime can get you to your goal quicker.
6. Personal Chef
If you love to cook, this might be a side hustle for you. Most people love home-cooked food, but not many have time to make it. As a personal chef, you can do this for them.
Most personal chefs offer similar services. One is that they cook a bunch of meals in their own kitchen and then deliver a week’s worth of food to their clients.
Another common one is to prepare the food in the client’s kitchen. You can package your services in any way you choose.
Hobby Classes for Homeschoolers
If you’re not a homeschooler – or even if you’ve just been forced into it due to COVID – I’m going to let you in on a little secret. Homeschoolers love extracurricular activities and classes. We’re not just talking sports and dance here, either. Don’t get me wrong – we love those, too. However, that’s not what I’m referring to at this moment.
Instead, I’m talking about a much wider range of things. You see, a very popular and common view in homeschooling is that everything is a teaching moment – life is a classroom.
We teach from textbooks, too, but we love activities. We love to expose our kiddos to anything that broadens their minds, so we’re always looking for groups and classes outside of typical schooling.
If you have any skills at anything, you can teach an online class or an in-person class for homeschoolers. Most communities have at least one homeschool group on Facebook where you can advertise. You’ll just need to reach out to the admin of that page for permission to advertise.
On the page I run and the other homeschool pages I’m a member of, some example classes include:
Really, the sky’s the limit. If you can teach it, you’ll find some interested parties. And if you offer a group price, that interest will increase.
Sell Information and Experience
Everyone knows something better than others. Maybe you are an expert at getting your kids to be active and eat healthily. Maybe you’ve figured out the secret to obtaining balance in life. Or maybe you can completely rock digital marketing.
No matter what you are good at, there is someone out there who isn’t and can use your knowledge and wisdom. Package that invaluable information into an ebook or a course to sell.
Mobile Services
Any mobile service you can offer is a great option. That’s because it’s very convenient for busy people. Some very popular options are:
Those are common ones. However, anything that you can take to the customer instead of having them come to you can work.
For example, you could offer mobile laundry services, where you pick up the customer’s laundry, take it to the laundromat or dry cleaners, and then bring it back to them. It’s all about convenience and saving your customers time.
Search your community pages on social media to determine what people complain about and look for the most. Then, create a service package and advertise in the same places.
Declutter Your Home
Many people are looking for extra income and have no idea that they already have money sitting around. All you need to do is go through your home and find things you no longer want or need. You can then sell them on Ebay, Amazon, Facebook, or one of the many apps created to sell used belongings.
Need an idea of what to sell? The following are some common ones:
Again, this list is only the beginning. Keep in mind that just because something isn’t valuable to you, it doesn’t mean someone else won’t love it and use it. One man’s trash and all…
So go through it all – from one corner of your home to the other. Look for stuff you haven’t used in a while, stuff you received as gifts that you don’t really want, or things that you’re saving for “someday” or for a purpose. Today’s that day and the purpose is to make you some cash for your goals.
As a side note, if you have textbooks to get rid of, you have a few options. One is to sell them to a college campus bookstore. Another is to use a site like Knetbooks, BookScouter, SellBackYourBook, Textbook Rush, or Amazon. I’ve personally used several of these options and got some decent money for my old textbooks.
Resell Items
This is similar to the previous option but a little different. It involves buying items with the intention of selling them, and there are several ways to go about it.
Most people who choose this option, purchase items at thrift stores, yard sales, and even the clearance aisle at their local stores.
Some people spend time finding good deals online and reselling them.
Others still find wholesale companies and buy large lots to resell.
You will need some time to do some research, learn what items work best for you, and determine your pricing. It also requires a little start-up capital, but how much you need depends on what you choose to resell.
Once you have the items, you have a few ways to resell them:
- Amazon
- Shopify
- Your own website
- Local markets
- Ebay
Again, this option takes a little time to get moving. However, there are people out there that make a full-time income from reselling.
And while this section was referring to smaller scale items, reselling is a limitless field. You can buy and resell cars, homes, and even stocks. It’s typically better, though, to start with smaller, less-involved options and work your way up to larger ones if you want.
Event Planning
Are you the person everyone goes to when it’s time to plan a party or get-together? If so, why not get paid for it?
If you are working for yourself and have some events you can showcase, you don’t really need any qualifications. If, however, you want to work for a company or are aiming for corporate clients, they might require a Bachelor’s degree in business or a certificate.
Music
You don’t have to be a celebrity to get paid to play an instrument. You can offer to play around your community for events, such as weddings, or even in nightclubs. You could also record and sell tracks online.
You can also teach music. Most people looking for music lessons aren’t as interested in qualifications as they are in your ability to play. As long as you have the skill, you can offer beginner music courses in-person or even online.
Transcription
If you have a computer, the Internet, some good headphones, and can type fast, transcription is an option. Sites like Rev have brought transcription services to the masses – allowing beginners to get some experience.
Having been a transcriber before – for a brief time – I can say that it’s not for everyone. And beginners don’t get paid very much. However, if you enjoy it and stick with it, you can build up to bringing in some decent side money.
Photography
For those who love taking pictures, there are many ways to make money. You can photograph weddings and other events. You can also be a lifestyle photographer, a birth photographer, or a family portrait photographer. And you can sell stock photos online through places like Shutterstock.
Print-On-Demand
You know all that cool merch that your teenager asks for from their favorite YouTuber? Or is that just my kids?
In any event, you can make your own merch – and you don’t have to be famous to sell it. Really, all you need is a good saying or image to put on a T-shirt, mug, gym bag, or a similar item.
You then create an account on a print-on-demand platform, like Cafe Press or Printful, and market your item on a platform like Shopify or through your social media pages.
With most print-on-demand options, you pay nothing upfront. You set your pricing, and when a customer orders your item, the POD service takes their cut.
They then print the item and ship it. Basically, you supply the idea and attract the market. The POD service takes care of the rest.
Blogger
You’ve heard of blogging – few people haven’t these days. And many, many people are making anything from a few bucks to thousands or more each month through this avenue – depending on how much they put into it.
Simply put, blogging is about choosing a niche, and then providing relevant, valuable content for your audience. However, blogging alone typically doesn’t make you money. It’s just the avenue through which you attract your audience.
Bloggers make money through other things, such as:
- Selling courses
- Affiliate marketing
- Selling ad space
- Selling services and products through their website
- Creating and selling printables – Yes, I said it again: printables
Serve/Bartend
I have worked in more restaurants and bars than I care to count. I can tell you a few things about this role:
You can actually make good money, both part-time and full-time. Of course, the more days you work, the more you make, but even just one shift a week can make a difference.
The money varies widely. There are slow times – times when you might only walk away with $40 for a full shift. However, there have been times I’ve made several hundred dollars in one night – at a regular, local restaurant.
Not everyone will enjoy this job. I loved most of it – especially working around people. I loved pasting a smile on my face, being kind, and making a difference in people’s days. However, there are moments – and people – that will make you hate this job. If you can’t keep a smile on your face even when you’re being done wrong, it’s probably not a good fit for you.
other possibilities
The ideas listed above are just a few options. Some other possibilities include being a:
- Delivery driver for places like Walmart and Amazon
- Ride share driver
- Pet sitter
- Babysitter
- Dog walker
- Produce seller at farmers’ markets
- Social media manager
- Social media influencer
- Podcast host
- Digital marketer, offering services like email marketing, SEO management, and content creation
- Personal shopper
- Virtual assistant
- Video editor
Pretty much every option listed above can be done on a freelance or entry-level without any certifications. This makes it easy to break into those fields.
Quick Certification Programs
If nothing listed above suits you, or if you’re looking for a more substantial increase in income, there are some quick certificates you can acquire. The following are some options that are not only popular now, but are expected to remain popular for quite some time.
Beside each, you will find the shortest amount of time I was able to find for these programs. Please keep in mind, however, that this is the shortest amount of time. How long it takes you will depend on the particular program you enroll in and how quickly you can complete it.
- Massage therapist: 3 weeks
- Physical therapist or assistant: 4 months
- Software developer: 3 months
- Yoga instructor: 2 weeks
- Programming: 3 months
- Information technology (IT): 4 months
- Pharmacy technician: 4 months
- Forklift operator: 1-2 days
- Marketing: 8 months
- EMT: 2 weeks
- Fitness trainer: 3 months
- Phlebotomy technician: 10 weeks
- Medical billing and coding: 9 months
- Flight attendant: 3 weeks
- Professional coding: 9 months
- Dental assistant: 10 weeks
- Travel agent: 4 months
As you probably noticed, most of these programs are in either the medical field or the technology field. The skills you pick up through these certificate programs are in-demand and can open many doors for you. Each one can help you increase your overall income, make some extra income on the side, get promoted at your current job, or even switch career paths.
Getting Started
Hopefully, you have found at least one idea that excites and motivates you. The question now is how to get started without the necessary cash flow? Try one of these:
You could start with options that cost you nothing, and use the money you make to invest in another idea. For instance, you could declutter your home and sell your items first. Then, put your profits toward buying and reselling on Amazon.
Consider a personal loan to get you going.
Using the Goalry Mall, you can search for loans that suit your needs. Additionally, you can use the Goalry Mall to budget for your dream, build wealth, keep up with any loans you take out, and much more.
Conclusion
Unless it’s harmful to you, there is never a good reason to give up on a dream. And every dream is possible if you’re willing to work hard and commit. As Jim Rohn says, “If you really want to do something, you’ll find a way. If you don’t, you’ll find an excuse.”
At Goalry, we want to help you find a way – and slay all of the excuses. That’s why we offer a platform full of information and tools to help. Sign up for your member key today so you can start building your dream life and achieving every financial goal you set for yourself.